Lamp adapter and receptacle



p 1945. A. G. STEINMAYER 2,335,473

LAMP ADAPTER AND RECEPTACLE Filed June 1, 1942 l 2.4 5 *1- Z6 a r j 4 2a 3 25 2/ j i i 20 f 21 15 Y a Z 5 9 1 "25 'l i 27 12 H I 14 5 11 I if L: r 3

; INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

Patented Sept. 25, 1945 LAMP ADAPTER AND REGEPTACLE Alwin G. Steinmayer, Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to Line Material Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a

corporation of Delaware Application June 1, 1942, Serial No. 445,310 3 Claims. (Cl. 173-358) This invention relates to lamp adapters and receptacles and has to do. more especially with street-lighting equipment and other lighting installations where it is desirable to be able to extract and replace light bulbsby means of a longhandled tool and: to effect the extraction and; replacement operationsby simple pulling and pushing manipulations instead of being required to unscrew the burned-out bulbs from their sockets and to screw into the sockets the replacement bulbs. I

Street lighting circuits are of two types series and parallel. For series installations it has long been, the practice to provide a lamp bulb adapter comprising a screw socket and a pair oi elongated contact springs which can be pushed into a receptacle having complementary contacts and withdrawn therefrom by merely pulling on the bulb. But for parallel installations it has been the universal practice not to provide such adapters-it having been necessary in those cases to screw the bulbs into their sockets and unscrew them with a long-handled tool or to employ a tower for the purpose of gaining direct access to the lamp.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a lamp adapter and receptacle of the push-pull type which can be employed advantageously on parallel lighting installations, and which, to avoid confusion, is wholly dissimilar to thetype used on series installations.

Another object is to provide a lamp adapter and receptacle so designed that the adapter can be pushed into. engagement with thereceptacle withouthaving to turn the bulb and adapter to a certain angular position in order to secure registration between the adapter and receptacle.

The, preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. l is an elevational view of a combined reeeptacle and adapter together with a light bulb inserted in the adapter;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view;

Fig. 3 is a. section ofthe receptacle taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section of the adapter taken along the same plane as that of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a sub-assembly of some parts shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The receptacle is identified as a whole by reference numeral l, the adapter by reference numeral 2, and the light bulb by reference numeral 3.

The light bulb is of conventional design, having a screw-base 4.

The adapter 2 comprises a socket-like housing 5 of porcelain or other dielectric material within which is secured by screws 6 a metals hell l which is formed with a thread to receive, the screw-base of the light bulb.

Secured to the upper end of porcelain housing 5 by means of screws 6 is a tubular metal contact Q is internally threaded at its lower end to engage a screw t4 having a contactbutton [5. A spring l6 urges screw M, downwardly and serves to hold pin it in its down position, as shown. in Fig. 4, when there is no bulb in the socket.

As shown in Fig. 2, screw 14, and pin [3 are forced upwardly against the. pressure of spring I6 when the bulb is screwed intov the socket. For the purpose of restraining the light bulb against unscrewing as a result of vibration, a pair of crimped leaf springs I! are arranged to project through openings in shell I into engagement with the screw base of the bulb. These bear against the screw base and exert frictional restraint against rotation thereof but do not prevent the bulb being intentionally unscrewed and do not materially interfer with insertion oi the bulb into the adapter. Sleeve 8 and pin l3 are the contact members through which electrical connections are made with the power line, through the medium of the receptacle. These elementsbeing co-axial are capable of being pushed into the receptacle without regard to the angular position of the adapter about its axis, relatively to the receptacle.

Receptacle l comprises a molded housing l8 of porcelain or other suitable dielectric and is provided with an external flange [9 to which is attached straps 20 which serve to connect it with a lamp housing 2 l--see Fig. 1.

Housing l8 has a recess 2| in the upper end of which is mounted a fixed contact member 22. The latter is secured to housing [8 by screws 23, which also serve to anchor to the housing a terminal connector 24.

Contact member 22 has a depending socket portion 25 which is flared at its lower end to facilitate engagement with the upper end of pin l3which latter is split lengthwise as indicated at 26 (Fig. 2) in order to render it laterally comtion-28 to engage groove 10 on sleeve 8.

pressible, thus afiording good contact while at the same time permitting the pin to be inserted without too much pressure being required.

Secured to the lower end of housing l8 and capable of being contracted into engagement with the outer peripheral surface of sleeve 8. This ensures good electrical contact between -contact member 21 and sleeve 8.

Grooves 34 and 35 are milled in opposite sides of collar portion 28 (see Fig. and these afford openings through which crimped portions of wire ring 29 project to'the interior of the collar por- The wire ring is discontinuous, as shown in Fig. 5, and is yieldable outwardly to permit insertion of sleeve 8, as shown in Fig. 2.

Wire ring 29 serves as a yieldable lockin means for securing the adapter and light bulb in the receptacle while permitting their withdrawal in response to downward pull. Contact member 21 is provided with a laterally'extending terminal connector 36.

Electrical connection to the power line is effected through terminal connectors 24 and 36, which are provided with wire-receiving apertures 31 and binding screws 38.

What is claimed is:

. 1. A socket member comprising a dielectric housing having a'recess, a socketed terminal in the bottom of said recess having an opening flaredtoward the other end of said recess, and a, cylindrical terminal at said other end of said housing, said terminals being substantially concentrically correlated and fixedly mounted on said housing; in combination with an adapter comprisin a socket-like insulating housing, a tubular contact secured to the base of said housing and positioned within and in contact with said cylindrical terminal, a rod-like contact concentric with said tubular contact and projecting into and frictionally engaging said socketed ter minal,.said rod-like contact being slidably movablethrough the base of said housing and having a contact head within said housing, stop means on said rod-like contact engageable with saidbase for limiting the inward movement of said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing, and sprin means interposed between said contact headand housing urging said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing.

2. A socket member comprising a dielectric housing having a recess, a socketed terminal in the bottom'of said recess, and a cylindrical terminal at said other end of said housing, said terminals being substantially concentrically correlated and fixedly mounted on said housing; in combination with an adapter comprising a sock et-like insulating housing, a tubular contact secured to the base of said housing and positioned within and in contact with said cylindrical terminal, a rod-like contact concentric with said tubular contact and projecting into and frictionally engaging said socketed terminal, said rodlike contact being slidably movable through the base of said housing and having a contact head within said housing, stop means on said rod-lil e contact engageable with said base for limiting the inward movement of said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing, and spring means interposed between said contact head and housing urging said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing, the distance between the end of said rod-like contact engaging said socketed terminal and the corresponding end of said tubular contact when said rod-like contact is moved inward- 1y of said housing being less than the distance between the corresponding contact receiving ends of said socketed and cylindrical terminals, whereby said adapter upon insertion into said socket member willbe aligned therewith before contact is made between said rod-like contact and socketed terminal.

3. A socket member comprising a dielectric housing having a recess, a socketed terminal in the bottom of said recess having an opening flared toward the other end of said recess, and a cylindrical terminal at said other end of said housing, said terminals being substantially concentrically correlated and fixedly mounted on said housing; in combination with an adapter comprising a socket-like insulating housing, a tubular contact secured to the base of said housing and positioned within and in contact with 40. said cylindrical terminal, a rod-like contact concentric with said tubular contact and projecting into and frictionally engaging said socketed terminal, said rod-like contact being slidably movable through the base of said housing and having a contact head within said'housing, stop means on said rod-like contact engageable with said base for limiting the inward movement of said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing, and spring means interposed between said contact head and housing urging said rod-like contact inwardly of said housing, the distance between the end of saidrod-like contact engaging said socketed terminal and the corresponding end of said tubular contact when said rod-like contact is moved inwardly of said housing being less than the distance between the corresponding contact receiving ends of said socketed and cylindrical terminals, whereby said adapter upon insertion into said socket member will be aligned therewith before contact is made between said rod-like contact and socketed terminal.

ALWIN G. STEINMAYER. 

